Clarella grain free pasta is packed full of the goodness of free range eggs from the Red Barn on the Garden Route. This easy to digest gluten free product is made from tapioca flour which is derived from cassava root. It is not made with cereals, legumes or pseudograins and is thus low in inflammatory lectins. It is high in protein and natural fibre and is a delicious healthy alternative to grain based pasta.

THE PASSION BEHIND OUR PRODUCTS.

Like many people who suffer from autoimmune disease, we were disillusioned with the options that modern medicine had to offer. After adopting a strict Paleo diet, we found relief from symptoms without any side effects. This meant eliminating all foods that contained cereal grains, legumes, and dairy, and living on animal protein, fresh fruit and vegetables. In the beginning it was tough, as we could no longer eat those convenient satisfying foods, like bread, cereals, rusks, cake or biscuits, and worst of all, for an Italian family, no pasta! Whilst wheat was identified as the main trigger for our disease, all the gluten free products on the market contained either maize, rice or soya, which also trigged inflammatory responses, and were out of bounds for us.

Over the years we sought the holy grail of making pasta that tastes like pasta but can be tolerated by people with autoimmune conditions. We had a lot of kitchen flops, fiddling with grain free flour substitutes until we finally cracked it. Then came the acid test… the big Italian family came for Christmas lunch, and to their surprise, there was a starter plate of delicious grain free pasta that could be eaten by all. After 8 years of not eating pasta the return of family food memories was quite emotional. Clarella, named after our daughters Clara and Stella was born!

WHY GRAIN FREE PASTA?

Grains are the seeds of grasses that include wheat, maize, rice, rye, oats, and spelt. Grains naturally contain toxic substances that protect the seed from being eaten. These include lectins, specifically prolamins (such as gluten) agglutinins, digestive enzyme inhibitors, saponins and phytic acid. These substances are not toxic enough to make us immediately ill after eating them, but the effects are subtle and can take years to manifest as disease. They do this by directly increasing the permeability of the gut or damaging the gut by feeding the overgrowth of bacteria and yeast in the small intestine. People react to these foods in different ways. Some react early on in life and others may never show any effect. Most people fall somewhere in between these extremes. It is believed that the consumption of grains is probably responsible for the majority of non-infectious diseases we face today, especially autoimmune disease.